Seven spacecraft were launched, of which five arrived safely on the Moon and returned data. Surveyor 3 was the first of the series to carry a surface-sampling device with which the spacecraft excavated four trenches up to 18 cm deep. Eighteen months later, the crew of Apollo 12 landed nearby and recovered Surveyor 3's TV camera and other parts. Laboratory analysis showed that terrestrial bacteria had remained alive in the camera's insulation during its time on the Moon.
Surveyor 6 became the first spacecraft to (temporarily) lift off from the surface of another world. On Nov. 17, 1967, its engines were fired for 2.5 seconds enabling it to rise 3.7 m above the ground. It was then commanded to move 2.4 m in a westerly direction and then touch down again. Following this maneuver, it continued its data-gathering mission, including the return of 30,027 pictures.
Related entry Moon, unmanned spacecraft
Related categories SATELLITES AND SPACE PROBES
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